Ralph
Waldo Emerson once said, “Imitation is suicide.” Through what I have seen, Teenagers have been imitating
others for a long time but now that is starting to change. Teens are becoming more unique and nonconformist,
which is good, but sometimes it can be a bit ostentatious. As a teenager, I have seen many bizarre
fads come and go through my years in school.
Some
people believe that being an individual means going completely against what is
considered “normal”. But in a way,
they are imitating each other by being “different” in the same way. Whether it is big gaudy glasses,
half-shaved hair doo’s, or a mask of ghastly tattoo’s, it is not usually the
best choice if one is currently trying to get a job or have a decent standing
in society. People should tone
down their “flair” to a tolerable level.
As soon as teens become adults, life turns from one of childish fun and
innocence to one of responsibility and money.
One
point is that teens tend to imitate what they think is cool. It sickens me to see the youth of today
getting into the things they do. Teenage
boys like to imitate gang members thinking being “gangster” is cool. First it’s just looks they imitate,
then these supposed “gangsters” start to imitate how they act too. This can be very dangerous. Not only is it guys that are exhibiting
bad behavior through imitation, girls are also affected by it. I’ve noticed in the underclassmen, a
lot of the girls are very sexually active. In my opinion, when they got to high school, they felt like
they needed to grow up fast in order to fit in. Although having sex is an adult activity, it does not cause
one to grow any more mature. Girls
should feel comfortable being themselves, even if that means being a virgin.
Imitation
is suicide though, thinking of it in a literal sense. By acting like another person, I wouldn’t be acting like
myself. And if I were to continue
to ignore my real self, who I really am would begin to deteriorate and I would
eventually lose sense of who I am.
People should follow their own dreams and not the dreams of others. If they do that, they most likely will
have a happy future doing what they love.
If there were no individuality, art would cease to exist, stories would
be monotonous and boring, and generally life would be dull.
Really good topic. I agree with you in your saying that when many teens try to become unique and stray from mainstream fashion, they still conform to subcultures and still follow fads in rejecting the norm. It's laughable how many people call themselves "weird" and would deny being normal even though there are many people like them. In that respect, NOBODY is normal. Which is an entire topic in itself... I personally feel that "normal" simply takes on a different definition depending on whom you ask!
ReplyDeleteAnd there is also the saying, "Imitation is the greatest form of flattery," and some might even say that it's impossible to be original nowadays. So I think R.W.E. might be a little too hard on us with this quote, though it does have some validity, definitely. :)
People, especially young ones, teens and younger, need a role model, someone to look up to. But you are correct that at the same time they need to be themselves, even if they are just finding out who they are. "Gangsters" are definitely NOT a good example for today's youth, or for that matter, anyone.
ReplyDeleteI think you chose a topic that is very present and applicable to our daily lives. The new cultural norm of being different than everybody else is very prevalent in our society. However people are deluding themselves, for an accepted belief of nonconformity is itself conformity. Besides, modern day fashions are all so similar in their rebellion (I have seen shirts that say "listen to propaganda") that the only way to stand out nowadays would be to wear respectable attire such as a suit and tie. However in my opinion the root of all these undesirable behaviors stems from role models. With divorce rates skyrocketing many teenagers do not get access to a good role model so instead take after the stereotypical representations of themselves on movies and television. Modern day music laced with swear words and references to gangs, drugs, and alcohol are certainly not helping. Not until positive role models are promoted will teenagers (hopefully) veer of the dangerous and self-destructive path upon which they have been set.
ReplyDeleteWhile the idea of being able to express ourselves and be comfortable with our own style and personality is nice, the more we express ourselves the more we divide ourselves. Soon we would become completely isolated left with only our own ideas.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up some great points against imitation, however i don't think it is fair to neglect the points for it. people could like u said imitate gangsters and start causing mischief, or they could imitate a sibling and learn maturity.
ReplyDelete